


Cat-boys and Coffee

by Kahluah



Category: Tokyo Ghoul
Genre: Alternate Universe, Cat boy! Kaneki, I just found some cat boy drabbles in the tag and got inspired to write this, M/M, No ghouls AU, Rating May Change, also Shiro! Kaneki, because that character fits cat attitude a bit more, i have literally nothing planned for this, im so sorry, so who knows
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2015-04-23
Updated: 2015-07-19
Packaged: 2018-03-25 09:35:11
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 5
Words: 9,637
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/3805534
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Kahluah/pseuds/Kahluah
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>One day while walking home from another normal boring day Hide finds a boy injured and passed out in an alley. He takes the boy home to tend to his wounds, but finds that this boy is far more interesting than he first thought. Perhaps this boy is just the think Hide needed to add some excitement in his life.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> So as I said in the tags. I found a fic of Tokyo Ghoul cat boy drabbles and just got a few ideas, and then this happened. My other fic still takes priority, but something might pop up for this again every once in a while.

The day had started out just like any other. He had gotten up, eaten breakfast, went to school, put some hours in at his part-time job, and was currently heading home. It was just like any other day. His life was almost unbearably normal; nothing unexpected ever happened around him. So, it goes without saying that the last thing he expected that day was to find a boy passed out in an alleyway by his apartment.

It was the boy’s shockingly white hair that caught his attention, he walked towards him and saw that he seemed to be around his own age, but when he actually got close he saw that the boy was covered in scrapes and bruises. The boy also had what appeared to be… cat ears? Perhaps it was some sort of cosplay, but that wasn’t what mattered right now, the boy was hurt and Hide felt like he should do something to help. So, as gently as he could, he lifted the boy up and began to carry him back to the apartment.

He set the boy down on the bed before heading to the bathroom to get the first aid kit, luckily none of the wounds looked that bad, so he should be able to treat them all with what he had. He started by cleaning the worse of the wounds, trying to be careful as not to wake him up. Whatever happened must have really knocked him out, because he only response Hide got was a scrunched face and a few grumbles of discomfort when the disinfectant was put on.

After he got everything bandaged up, Hide finally got the chance to have a good look at the boy. Despite all the bruises he had nice white skin, along with his white hair it made him look really delicate and fragile. Hide couldn’t help but think he was sort of cute in a way, especially with those cosplay ears on. He leaned in closer, looking at the ears. They looked like they were really well made, they must have cost a fortune to look so realistic. He couldn’t help but wondered what they felt like. Hide tentatively reached out to touch one of the ears, causing it to twitch and _oh my god they’re real_.

Hide jumped back while the boy just wrinkled his nose in discomfort and turned away from him. It was now that he noticed something moving slightly in one of the boy’s pant legs. _Is that a tail?_ He wondered if the boy had tucked it away so that it wouldn’t get noticed. If that was true he probably also had a hat to hide the ears, but it must have gotten lost in whatever scuffle had taken place.

He would be lying if he said he wasn’t curious about the boy. Hide leaned forward, trying to get closer look. He put his hand on the bed, causing it to dip down and the bedsprings to creak ever so slightly, but it must have been loud enough to those sensitive ears because the boy suddenly shot up and backed himself into the corner of the bed where the headboard meets the wall. His ears were splayed back against his head defensively and his eyes looked like saucers. His eyes locked on Hide and a low growl rose from his chest, causing Hide to freeze.

“Who are you?! Where am I?! What do you want with me?!” He glared at the blond.

Hide moved back a bit, giving the boy more room so that he didn’t feel as cornered. “Nothing, nothing. I just saw that you were hurt while I was walking home and thought I should at least bandage you up.” He spoke calmly, trying to show he meant no harm to the boy. “We’re at my house. I’m Hideyoshi Nagachika by the way, but you can just call me Hide.” He held out his hand for the other to shake, but when the boy didn’t move he put his hand back down.

The boy just continued to glare at him and the two were immersed in silence. Hide doesn’t like awkward silences much, so he spoke up again. “Hey, are those ears real by the way?”

“Wh–“ The boy touched the top of his head and his eyes went wide when he felt the soft fur of his ears and not the fabric of the hat he usually wore. Quickly he covered the head with his hands and turned away from the blond.

Hide’s eyes gleamed with excitement. ”What are you? Have you always like this? Can I touch your ears again?”

The boy glanced back at the blond. “Y-you don’t think I’m strange?”

“What, no, of course not...” Hide said. “Oh! And do you have a tail too? I thought you did, but I wasn’t quite sure, and I wasn’t just going to reach into your pants to see because that would be like really weird and I’m not a creeper like that, but I’m really curious.” All of this was said in one breath, the words running together. He reached forward slightly towards the other.

The boy backed away from the hand, still covering his head and growled lightly again. His eyes were fixed on Hide’s hand, warily watching it. He only seemed to become less tense when the blond pulled his hand away once more. His eyes flicked up to Hide, “Yeah, I have a tail… does that matter? Do you think I’m weird now? Its fine if you do, I’m used to it…”

“What, no! I think it’s cool!” He excitedly looked at the white haired boy. “What’s your name by the way?”

Only after he was sure Hide wouldn’t reach out again did he relax a bit and remove his hands that had been covering the ears which were still flat against his head. “Kaneki… Kaneki Ken.”

Hide gave him the biggest smile he could. “It’s nice to meet you then Kaneki!”

Kaneki’s stomach suddenly growled, making the boy flush. He looked positively red in comparison to his white hair. Hide couldn’t help but laugh. “It is getting pretty late and I haven’t had dinner yet myself. I was thinking of grilling up some fish, do you want some too?”

“What makes you think I’d like fish?” Kaneki shot back defensively.

“Do you not like fish?” Hide asked. He didn’t mean anything by it, he really did have some fish he had to cook up tonight or else it would go bad. “I could make you something else if you want, I did kind of drag you here after all; it would be rude not to get you dinner after that.”

Kaneki eyed him, slowly looking him up and down once more before speaking. “Fish is my second favorite, so I guess it’s fine…”

“Alright then!” Hide turned around, heading for the door so that he could get to work on making dinner. “What’s your favorite food if you don’t mind me asking.” He glanced back when he got to the door and saw that Kaneki was following a few steps behind him, though he did back up a bit when Hide turned towards him.

“I like the burgers from Big Girl...” He replied quietly.

“No way! I love that place too!” The blond said cheerily before heading to the kitchen once more. “I like mine with a fried egg on it.” He began rummaging through his cupboards, getting out the supplies to cook their dinner.

Kaneki eyed the blond from across the room for the entirety of time it took to make the two dinner. Even when Hide set his plate down on the dining table it seemed like the boy wouldn’t approach. But after a few minutes, it seems the smell of freshly cooked fish was too much for him, and he slowly approached the table. His gaze was fixed on the plate, but ever few second his eyes would flick to Hide; making sure he hadn’t moved from his seat at the opposite side of the table.

Before he sat down, Kaneki reached behind him and pulled his tail out from his pant leg. It was rather uncomfortable to sit with it tucked in there, and since Hide already knew there was really no point in keeping it hidden.

He still moved slowly, watching the blond and making sure he wouldn’t move even after Kaneki sat down. Hide watched Kaneki curiously the whole time. The boy really did act just like a cat; it was cute in a way, but he hoped that he would start eating before the fish got cold.

Finally Kaneki turned his full attention to the food in front of him, taking his first bite of fish. It tasted delicious, and for the first time since he woke up his ears flicked forward in content; the taste of good food overshadowing his caution and fear towards the other.

“Is it good?” Hide asked.

Kaneki’s head shot up when the other spoke, his ears automatically flattening. It took him a few seconds to respond, like he was processing the question and thinking about whether or not to respond, but his ears flicked back forward and he spoke in that same quiet voice, “Yeah… It’s good…”

The rest of the meal after that went on in silence. Hide was the first to finish, he made his way to the kitchen and bean to wash his plate. “When you’re done just put your plate on the counter.” He called back to the boy. He considered it a big accomplishment that he actually got Kaneki to sit down and eat with him; he didn’t want to scare him off now.

After he had finished, Kaneki cautiously walked into the kitchen and set his plate on the counter by the sink where Hide was cleaning. He was still unsure if he trusted the blond or not; he didn’t really trust people in general, but there was something about him that made Kaneki want to drop his guard. He didn’t really like that; that’s why he had been extra cautious around him this entire time.

“So, it’s getting rather late, if you’re out any longer your family would probably be worried, so do you want me to take you home after this?” Hide asked, drying the last of the dishes. “I don’t usually use it, but I have a bike. You can ride on the back and I’ll take you wherever you need to go.”

Kaneki only mumbled in response.

Hide turned around to face the other and saw his ears were splayed flat again, but it didn’t seem to be out of caution and distrust this time. “What was that?”

“I said I don’t have a family.”

“Oh...” Hide rubbed the back of his head. “Do you at least have a place to return to?” Kaneki just remained silent. Hide’s heart dropped. This boy had probably been alone for such a long time. Nobody should ever be alone like that. “Then do you want to stay here? For tonight at least? I can even take the couch if you want, I just… you should have a place to stay…” Hide didn’t know why he felt so strongly for the other, they had just met after all, but he couldn’t stand the thought of leaving him alone right now.

Kaneki stared at the blond, taken by surprise at that offer. He had just met him, but Hide did tend to his wounds, and make him dinner, and he also didn’t seem to be weirded out by the whole cat thing. He didn’t know why, but Kaneki felt like he could kind of trust the other, at least somewhat. “Fine, just for tonight… but I get the bed.” He said before stalking off back to Hide’s bedroom.

The blond shrugged and headed to the couch, pulling out the blanket he always kept behind it and snuggling himself up in it. Tomorrow was the weekend, so he didn’t really have anything to do. Perhaps he could go get Kaneki a hat since he seemed to be missing his. Of course the other hadn’t said anything about missing a hat, but the way he covered his head after he first woke up made Hide think he had one at one point. Or perhaps they could both go to Big Girl and get a burger since they both seemed to like it.

Hide only knew one thing for sure, and that was that he wanted to spend more time with this mysterious cat boy.


	2. Chapter 2

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Still blocked for inescapable, so here you go.

Kaneki woke up to noise in the kitchen and the smell of coffee wafting through the house. _Ah, Touka must be up…_ He thought. He hasn’t seen her in months, but if he was sleeping in a bed he must have made his way over to her house the night before. Kaneki turned over and buried his face in the pillow. He tried to coax himself back to sleep, but the pillow didn’t smell right… It didn’t smell bad though, so he kind of shrugged it off, pulling the blanket over his head and sighing deeply. He didn’t know why the pillow smelled different today, but it was kind of nice and before he knew it a low rumbling was forming in his chest.

Hide did not get very good sleep on the couch last night, so now he was trying his best to make himself some coffee so that he could go about the day without feeling like the walking dead. And if he was making himself a cup he might as well see if his guest wanted some as well. Hide peeked into the bedroom and saw that the cat boy was all snuggled up in his blankets, and was that purring? _No… it couldn’t be_.

“Hey, Kaneki…” He spoke softly. He didn’t want to wake the other if they were still sleeping, but if they were awake he wanted an answer to his question. “I’m making some coffee, do you want some?”

That… wasn’t Touka’s voice… Kaneki shot up and backed himself into the same corner of the bed he did the night before. His fur stood on end and his tail was all fluffed up, twitching from side to side.

“Hey, hey… It’s ok, I didn’t mean to startle you.” Hide said, making a calming gesture with his hand. “I just wanted to know if you wanted some coffee.”

 _Oh, that’s right._ Kaneki remembered the events from the night before. He had gotten into a fight and Hide had taken him home and taken care of him. He relaxed, bring his tail around in front of him and smoothing out the fur with his hands. “Sorry… Um, yeah coffee sounds good.”

He padded out to the kitchen, following Hide. He watched the blond get down two mugs and fill them both with freshly brewed, _urgh instant_ coffee. He took the mug, holding it close to his face “Thanks…” and began to blow on the hot liquid.

Hide watched the white haired cat boy, and couldn’t help but giggle to himself; it seemed at Kaneki had a cat’s tongue. It was really cute. “So, I was thinking of going and getting you a hat today since I’m guessing you lost yours.” He said, taking a sip of his own drink.

Kaneki look up from blowing on his cup. “How did you know I lost my hat?”

“Lucky guess.” Hide said. “You touched your head immediately after waking up and were surprised, so I figured something must have been off. I figured you already knew about the ears, so the only thing that could have surprised you is that the thing that usually hides them was missing.”

Kaneki eyed the other before going back to blowing of the coffee. Hide seemed very intuitive, it might be something he has to watch out for in the future. “Thanks, but I was just going to wear the hood of my jacket up. I’m only staying because you went out of your way to make me a cup too.” He figured his drink was sufficiently cooled by now, so he took his first sip.

Hide couldn’t help but let his smile fall. “So you’re leaving?” He wanted to spend more time with Kaneki. He knew it was silly, it hasn’t even been a day since he met the other after all, but it felt like something would be missing in his life if Kaneki left. “Do you at least have a place to go? Last night you said…” He let his sentence slowly drop off.

“I’m going to see if a friend will let me stay with them a bit.” Kaneki said simple, downing the rest of his coffee, his nose scrunched ever so slightly in disgust. Instant coffee wasn’t his favorite, but somehow Hide found a way to make its horrible aftertaste more apparent that it usually was. Though it wasn’t much of a scrunch, Hide seemed to take notice.

“Sorry, I’m not that used to making coffee. I don’t usually drink it, so it might taste a bit bad.” He continued to slowly drink from his own mug. “Will you at least let me escort you to said friend? I’d like to know you made it there safely after how I found you last night.”

Kaneki sighed. Hide would probably follow him even if he said no, the blond seemed to be that type of person. “That’s fine. Though if you’re not ready soon I will leave without you.” He stalked over to Hide’s couch, taking the blanket the blond left there and curling up in it.

Hide downed the rest of his coffee before heading off to his room to get ready. At least he would be able to spend a bit more time with Kaneki before he would probably never see him again.

After Hide finished his morning chores he walked back into the living room to find Kaneki snuggled up and fast asleep on his couch. He slowly approached the other, being careful not to make any loud sounds and kneeled down in front of Kaneki’s face. He looked so peaceful and cute when he wasn’t all awake and scowling. His mouth was hanging open slightly, and one of his ears had flipped inside out. He reached out and gently flipped the ear right ways again.

Hide had expected Kaneki to bolt awake and scoot away like he had the past two times, what he did not expect was for the other to lean into the touch; pressing his head into Hide’s hand. He lightly scratched behind Kaneki’s ear and was surprised once more when a low purring started up. _Oh my god he really does purr,_ was the only thing he could think.

He continued to gently pet the other’s head, entranced by this gentle and cuddly side of them, but Kaneki would probably react badly if he woke up during this. So reluctantly Hide pulled his hand away, or at least he wanted to, but the other’s hands quickly reached out and grabbed hold of his wrist, making him freeze in place. Sleepy eyes slowly opened and looked up at Hide. And then Kaneki’s eyes continued to open wider and wider as he realized what he had done. He quickly pulled his hands back, but the purring took him a bit of effort to stop.

He stood up off the couch and took a few step forward so that his back was to Hide. “I um, take it you’re ready to go now?”

“Yeah...” Hide stood back up, rubbing the back of his head. He felt like he should say something, but saying something now would probably just make things more awkward. “Just lead the way I guess.”

Kaneki tucked in his tail and pulled up his hood to cover his ears before proceeding to the door without another word; trusting that Hide would just follow. Luckily for him the place they were heading was in the same ward as Hide’s apartment, so it wouldn’t take them very long to get there. Kaneki walk as fast as his legs would let him, he just wanted the uncomfortable air that had settles around them to end as soon as possible.

Hide silently followed behind Kaneki. He still didn’t know what he could say to fix this situation, not that it really mattered because before he knew it they were standing outside of a coffee shop. “Anteiku?” Wasn’t Kaneki taking him to a friend’s house? Why would they be at a coffee shop?

“Yeah, they should be on shift right now.” He said before walking into the shop.

A bell chimed when they walked through the door, and they were greeted by a cheery purple haired waitress. “Welcome to Anteik–” Her smile fell when she saw who walked through the door. “What are _you_ doing here?” She asked, glaring at Kaneki.

“That’s no way to greet a customer.” Kaneki said, flashing her a falsely sweet smile. He strode over to an empty table and took a seat. “We’ll have two coffees” He said, and gestured to Hide to take the seat across from him. The least he could do was treat the blond to some good coffee since he had helped him out.

Hide sat down across from the other, watching as the waitress stormed off to make their drinks, muttering under her breath. “So she’s the friend you were referring to?” He asked.

“Yeah. Touka seems kind of harsh, but once you get to know her she is a good person.”

“Is she also… you know.” He put his hands up to his head to mimic ears.

“Yeah, she is like me.”

“Does that mean there is like a bunch of you out there and you all have like your own secret society or something?” His eyes sparkled his excitement and interest.

Kaneki couldn’t help but give a small smile. He hadn’t known Hide for long, but he found his energetic attitude and gestures endearing. That is the biggest reason why he wanted to treat the blond to a drink. He didn’t want to say goodbye yet.

Two drinks were suddenly slammed down in front of the two, cutting off whatever conversation that may have started. “Here’s your drinks.”

“Thanks Touka.” Kaneki said, picking up the mug.

She just scowled at him and put her hand on her hip. “So why are you here?”

“I was wondering if I could stay with you for a bit.” Kaneki said simply.

Touka smirked at him. “What does your last playmate not want you around anymore?”

He couldn’t help the small growl that rose from him. “That’s none of your business. Can I stay with you or not?”

“Fine, but I won’t let you squat at my house like some common stray; if you want to stay you have to work here.”

He turned his head away from her, looking into his cup. “Whatever, that’s fine I guess.”

“Good, then you can start by taking my shift tomorrow, Yoriko and I will be at the mall if you need me.” She said smugly before walking away.

Silence once again overtook the two that were left at the table. Hide got the feeling that this was a last resort for Kaneki and that he was kind of ticked off about all of this, if he wasn’t hiding it his tail would probably be furiously twitching about. He wanted to cheer him up somehow, he couldn’t just leave the other while he was angry like this.

“So… If you’re going to be working here, does that mean I can come get some coffee here sometime?” He asked. He never really cared for the drink that much, but maybe he didn’t really have a reason to before.

Kaneki look up at him. “Y-yeah.” A small smile broke out on his face at the thought of Hide coming to see him. “I– You can come in whenever you want.” He was going to say how he would look forward to seeing him but that was just too embarrassing.

“Well then…” Hide said, finishing his drink. “I guess I’ll see you later then.” He rummaged in his pocket before pulling out a few crumpled bills and passing them over to Kaneki.

“Wha– Hide no.” He pushed the bills back over to the blond. “You helped me out, let me at least treat you to this.”

Hide just shook his head and gave him one of his blinding smiles. “No way; you can treat me next time when you’re waiting on me. It would be cuter that way.” He said before turning around and leaving.

Kaneki could feel his face heating up as he watched the blond leave. His heart fluttered as he replayed Hide’s words in his head, and he had to turn his gaze back to his cup because he was sure he had an embarrassing look on his face. But he could help but be happy because Hide had called him cute.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> i only got like 1 more idea for this so far, so next chapter whenever it comes out may be the last for a while.


	3. Chapter 3

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> procrastinating things, here is a chapter.

He didn’t know why Hide’s words got to him like that. It’s not he was really calling him cute or anything, just that he wanted the situation in which he received his thanks to be more appealing (in a way that one may describe as cute).  And why should he even be caring this much over the words of somebody he had only spent a few hours with anyway?! This whole thing was just plain ridiculous.

The bell of the coffee shop rang, signaling a new customer walking through the door and Kaneki’s head shot up at the sound. When he saw that the person was just one of the plain and regular customers with nothing bright about their demeanor or appearance he went back to leaning on his elbow with a sigh. Like he said before; plain ridiculous.

“Would you stop sighing like that, you’re scaring off all the customers.” Touka said, pushing him aside to take the customer’s order.

He only replied with a grumble. “It’s not like I care if they get scared off, I don’t even want to be here in the first place.” He was only working here because Touka was forcing him to after all, and he wasn’t fond of sleeping out on the streets.

“Could it be that you are sulking because a certain blond somebody hasn’t shown up yet?” She teased, handing the customer their order.

“What? No… Why would I care if he actually shows up or not? I’ve only met him once; it’s not like I care or anything.” Kaneki said.

Touka scoffed. “Would you quit being such a tsundere already? It’s obvious you feel something for the guy…” Her eyes and voice softened. “Even I could tell from that little bit that when you talk with him Kaneki. It was like you were before; back when you used to smile all the time like the idiot you are.”

Kaneki turned his head away from her. “That me is gone and we both know it.”

Touka made a few noises of frustration before stomping off, not seeing any point in having this argument with him yet again.

 

The sun was setting and all the customers were long gone; it was time to start closing up for today. Well technically the shop was still open for another five minutes or so, but nobody ever came in at this time. So when the bell on the shop door chimed, it was a surprise.

A head of bright blond hair came into view, immediately catching the attention of Kaneki who was currently wiping down the tables.

“Sorry it’s so late, but is that free coffee offer still on the table?” The customer said with the biggest grin one could imagine on his face.

Once again, for some strange reason, Kaneki couldn’t help the smile that appeared along with the simple presence of the blond. “Of course it is.”

“So, what brings you out for coffee so late in the day?” He asked, setting Hide order, a cappuccino, down in front of him.

Hide picked up the cup, taking a sip. “Well you see I was planning to come here after school for a pick-me-up, but when I got back to my house I ended up passing out on the couch and when I woke up I saw what time it was and had to rush out to work. My boss would literally kill me if I was late. I only just got off and figured I might as well see if you guys were still open, and luckily you were, even if it was only for another few minutes, so I decided to pop on in here.”

“Won’t all the caffeine keep you up tonight though? Even if it is technically a free cup you didn’t have to cash it in today. You could have very well just come in tomorrow.” The cat boy said, leisurely wiping down the counter now so that it appeared he was still working. He didn’t want Touka yelling at him for slacking off; it was bad enough that he was being forced to work here after all.

“Yeah, this probably isn’t the best idea I’ve ever had, but I wanted to see you.”

Hide’s words made him falter a bit in his attempt to act like he was cleaning. Did the blond not think about what he was saying before he said it? How else could he say such stupidly embarrassing things like it was no big deal? The only thing worse is the way he could help but react; his heart fluttered and he couldn’t help but feel a sense of joy at those five simple words.

“O-oh…” Was the only thing he mange to respond with in the end.

Hide sighed. “Yeah, but it’s too bad we don’t really have much time to actually talk. It’s closing time for you guys after all.”

“It’s ok if you stay after closing!” Kaneki blurted out without really thinking. He didn’t want Hide to leave yet, he just got here. He immediately felt his face heating up, realizing what he had just said.

The blond just shook his head. “I can’t do that to you guys, especially since I’m not even paying for this drink.” But then he smiled that brilliantly bright smile of his. “But I can come back tomorrow! And I won’t be late this time, I promise.” He said before taking the last sip of his drink. “Thanks for the coffee though, it was delicious!”

And once again the blond got up and left before Kaneki could even get another word in, leaving him with a sort of empty feeling he couldn’t really explain.

He didn’t know how long he had been standing there, staring at where Hide had left, when a voice spoke up behind him.

“Why don’t you just tell him you like him?” Touka said, making him nearly jump out of his skin.

Kaneki spun around to face her. “Me? Like him?” He scoffed. “N-no. I mean… I just met the guy. I’ve only seen him like what, twice? How could I possibly like him if I don’t even know him?”

“Maybe he’s your person.” She said simply.

His person. It was a rather simple term, but what it described held such a deep meaning.

“How could you even think that?!”” He bristled at her suggestion. “I don’t have anyone like that, we both know it!”  Seriously, how could Touka even think that was close to what was going on.

“Everyone has a person Kaneki, it’s just a matter of finding them.”

“Yeah, but Hide?” He started to pace back and forth. “How could you say someone like him is my person? First of all I haven’t even had the opportunity to have a proper conversation with him yet. Plus he is so needlessly energetic and happy all the time…” His thoughts wandered to that brilliant smile Hide always had on his face.

Touka nodded, seeing the look on his face. “Yes but Hide. Sometime with these things it isn’t a matter of getting to know the person. I mean with Yoriko and I, it was kind of like how you are describing things now.”

“But it’s not like you’ve even told her any of this. She doesn’t even know you’re a cat.” Kaneki argued back.

This time it was her turn to get defensive. “It’s not like she needs to know that. What we are is supposed to be a secret anyways. Who knows how humans will react if they know people like us exist after all.” She crossed her arms in front of her chest. “And it’s not like it’s my fault you already blew your cover and Hide knows what you are.”

“Just forget about it Touka. Hide is not my person and that’s that!” Kaneki said, stomping off somewhere to get away for a bit. He didn’t get why she was being so insistent on this. So what if he smiled when he was around Hide, it’s not like that really meant anything.

He didn’t want or need something like ‘his person’ in his life.

 

Just like he promised, Hide showed up at the coffee shop the next afternoon. He scanned behind the counter and around the room for Kaneki, but no matter how much he looked he didn’t seem to be able to find him among the staff or the customers. “Hello and welcome to Anteiku.” Came a voice from behind him.  He spun around to see the girl who greeted them the other day standing behind him.

“Are you looking for Kaneki?” She asked simply.

“Well, not in particularly. I mean I told him I would stop by today, but if he’s not here I guess it’s ok I ju–“ He tried his best to hide his disappointment. Of course he was looking for Kaneki, but if he wasn’t here there was really no helping it, and it would be rude to leave without buying anything just because a certain new waiter isn’t there.

She cut him off before he could say anymore. “He’s taking a break right now, he’s upstairs. If you want I can take you to him.” The blond nodded and she led him to the upper level of the shop, stopping outside of one of the first few doors. “He’s in here.” She said, opening the door so that he may walk in.

“Thanks uh… Touka, right?” He had only heard Kaneki say her name once or twice before on that first day.

“Yeah, you got it right.” She said before closing the door once more, leaving to head back downstairs and attend to the customers.

It was a simple room with a couch and a few seats surround a table, and on the couch lay a familiar figure. They were sprawled out across the couch, a black beanie was covering their face, probably to block out the light. When they heard the sound of the door closing they sat up, taking the hat off of their face and groggily looking towards the door. “What do you want now Touk…” Their eyes widened in surprise when they saw who it was. “Hide? What are you doing here?”

“Touka, she said you were up here and well,” Hide spoke quickly, trying to explain why he was once again appearing before a certain sleeping cat boy.

Kaneki just held up his hand so that the bond would stop talking, muttering something like “Of course she did.” To himself under his breath. He put the hat back on his head and scooched over so that the blond also had a place to sit on the couch. “So what brings you here today Hide?”

“Well I promised didn’t I?” He smiled, walking over to take a seat across from the other.

Kaneki couldn’t help but to return the smile. “Yes, yes you did.”

The two chatted about simple things, like what books they liked to read or videogames they liked to play. Kaneki asked what college Hide attended and what kind of classes he was taken at the moment. As it turns out He attended the same university Kaneki used to go to himself, and although they studied completely different subjects a few of their classes seemed to overlap.

“There is no way you were in my Asian History class.” Hide said. “I would have noticed if somebody like you was in that class. It was so boring, having someone like you in it would have made that class so much more interesting.”

The look that passed across Kaneki’s face seemed so sad and lonely. “Well I was a lot different back then… You wouldn’t have noticed me anyway, I didn’t stand out like I do now.” A few moments passed in silence as he reminisced about the past. It seemed like it would be a sore subject, so even Hide didn’t want to say anything to continue the subject.

Kaneki looked up at the clock and then back to Hide. “My break is almost up, but if you want to order something we could probably talk a bit more without getting in trouble.”

“I would love to.” Hide said, hopping of the couch and opening the door for the other. Kaneki interested him in a way others did not. He didn’t know if it was because of his nature, or just his personality, but Hide wanted to spend as much time with the other as he could.

In the end though he was only able to stay for a few more minutes before having to rush off to make it to his job on time, but from that day on it became a daily routine for Hide to stop by the coffee shop on his way home from school.


	4. Chapter 4

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> In which there are many text breaks, and Kaneki does the cute kitty face rub thing for like half the chapter.

****

The part of the day Kaneki always looked forward to was when Hide walked through the door of the coffee shop; his cheery smile and light conversations always made everything better, so when Hide said he wouldn’t make it in for a few days he could feel his heart sink a bit in his chest. If Hide wasn’t going to be there he didn’t really want to be there either.

“Hey Touka, take my shift tomorrow.” He was lounging on her couch, reading a book he picked up the other day.

“What, no. You’re staying at my house you have to work; that was the deal we made.”

He set the book down and flipped over to face her. “C’mon, I took your shift when you went to the mall, you can take one of mine.”

“Why? So you can go off and hang out with those back alley ‘friends’ of yours?”

He didn’t give her an answer.

She glared over at him. He had gotten a lot less cooperative since that blond stopped showing up every day, and the small arguments that have been breaking out have started to really grate on her nerves, so after a few long moments she finally said “You know what, fine. I don’t care. Go do what you want.” If he wasn’t going to put in any effort there was really no reason for him to be here. “But don’t expect this place to be unlocked by whatever time you decide to stride back here.”

He flipped back over and buried his nose in his book. “Whatever.”

 

* * *

 

Kaneki spent most of the day doing nothing in particular, simply wandering the streets and back alleys; trying to waste time until the sun finally decided to start setting. He walked into the small bar. It was never very crowded, but tonight there were a few people scattered around tables. He walked up to the counter behind which stood the owner of the bar. She had long wavy strawberry blond hair, and she almost always had a glass of wine in hand.

“Kaneki! It’s been so long!” She practically purred. “Tell me, what can I get for you today?”

He sat down at one of the stools. “Nothing for me today Itori, Touka would kill me if I came back with a hangover.”

“Aww, that’s no fun.” She pouted. “It’s been so long since you’ve come to see me, and now you won’t even have one drink?”

“You know how she gets. I’ll just have a water.”

Itori sighed. “Fine, but since you’re not going to drink,” She poured his water and slid the glass over to him. “you at least have to tell me, word on the street is that you were picked up by a cute little blond the other night. Is that true?” She winked at him to imply what she meant.

Kaneki chocked on his drink. “It’s not like that! He’s just a friend!” That’s what he said, but even he could feel his face turning red at thoughts of the blond.

“Uh huh, sure Kaneki, because when someone like that crosses your path they’re ‘just a friend’”

“Don’t talk about Hide like that.” He growled back at her.

Itori just laughed. “So his name is Hide? And you really need to relax Kaneki, I’m just joking.”

“If you’re going to keep joking like that I might need a drink after all.” He huffed.

“Now you’re talking!” She said, as if that had been her intent from the start. “I have just the thing you need.” She reached for a bottle on one of the top shelves. “This just came in and I think you’ll like it.” She filled a shot glass all the way to the top before setting it down in front of him. “So, tell me about this Hide.”

 

* * *

 

He doesn’t quite remember how he got here or even what time it was, but Kaneki was now standing outside of the door to Hide’s apartment. He raised his hand and loudly knocked on the door. “Hide!” After a few seconds with no answer he took to scratching his nails against the wood. “Hideeee!” He continued to scratch and whine until the door was opened by a familiar bleary eyed blond.

“Hide~!” Loud purring started almost immediately after seeing him, and Kaneki practically jumped the other, pulling him into a hug.

Hide did his best to shut the door with Kaneki hanging on him like that, but eventually he did get it closed. “Kaneki?” He asked sleepily. “What are you doing here, it’s like three in the morning.” He also noticed that the other wasn’t wearing anything to cover his ears, and his tail was out in the open.

“I missed you. I wanted to see you.” He said as he nuzzled his head into Hide’s chest. “It’s alright with you, right?” He asked, looking up at the blond. “You won’t kick me out, will you?”

Hide didn’t know what to say. Kaneki’s words were somewhat slurred, his face flushed, and he smelled ever so slightly of alcohol. “No… I won’t kick you out, but shouldn’t you be at home right now?”

“Touka locked me out, besides…” He started to rub his face against Hide once more. “You wouldn’t be there, and I wanted to see you since you aren’t coming into the shop anymore. It’s so lonely and boring there without you, there’s no point if you don’t come in.”

It was nearing the end of the semester, and Hide had to spend all his spare time studying so that he could manage to pass his classes, and that meant no coffee time at Anteiku.

Kaneki suddenly pulled away from Hide, looking up at him in determination. “Hide, I’ve got to tell you something important.” He said in the most serious way he could while intoxicated.

He continued to look at Hide until he was acknowledged with a small “Ok.”

“Hide.” He said again. “I think I like you.”

Hide wouldn’t say hearing that didn’t make him happy, in fact his chest felt all warm and fuzzy inside at the sound of those words, but he hardly even knew Kaneki. They should at least get to be friends before anything else happens.

“Hey, Hide.” Kaneki said, pulling away from the other’s chest. When Hide look to see what he was going to say he leaned forward again, capturing the blond’s lips.

Hide pushed the other back in surprise, making Kaneki give him a look of hurt and confusion.

“Do you not like me Hide?” He asked.

He stammered for words. “N-no, it’s not that. It’s j-just that I, um….” He scratched the back of his head. “I hardly even know you Kaneki.”

“But you like me, right?” The cat boy said, staring at him.

“Yeah, I guess I would say that.” Hide had really liked all the time he had spent with Kaneki so far, but, as he kept telling himself, they had just met.

“Then it’s fine, right?” Kaneki said back before going back to rubbing on Hide’s chest as he had previously been doing.

Hide sighed before reaching into Kaneki’s pocket to try and find his phone. As much as he loved the attention Kaneki was giving him and the fact that he had said that he came here to see him and that he liked him, Kaneki was drunk and he needed to go home. Luckily he was occupied at the moment and didn’t question Hide’s actions. After finding it he pulled it out of the other’s pocket before scrolling through the contacts, looking for a familiar name.

The phone rang a few times before it was finally picked up. “Kaneki?” Touka’s voice asked from the other end of the line. “Do you have any idea what time it is?! I thought I told you that–” but she was cut off by Hide.

“It’s Hide, Touka.”

“Hide?” Her tone suddenly changed. “Is everything alright? Did something happen to him again?”

“Ah, no. He’s alright… Well, he’s kind of alright. I was calling because I should probably bring him back to you.”

She sighed “Yeah, I have a good idea where he went tonight and you’re probably right. I’ll text you directions, just be sure to get him here safely.”

 

* * *

 

Touka texted him her address, and luckily she lived above the coffee shop. He was glad it was so close because getting Kaneki those few blocks had turned out to be a very daunting task. While it was amusing how cuddly and cat-like Kaneki was like this, fast traveling it did not make, but eventually he found himself knocking at the door of the purple haired waitress, Kaneki hanging on him like some sort of decoration.

She opened the door, quickly ushering them inside. It had proven impossible to get Kaneki to wear a hat or hide his tail, so he had to make the journey conspicuously. “Took you long enough.” Was the only thing she said. Maybe it was because of the late hour, or perhaps because it was the privacy of her own home, but her own set of ears and tail were not hidden. Given that the few times he had seen her in the shop and she had not been wearing any sort of headgear, Hide figured she must have a wig cut in the same style as her own hair that she used to hide them.

Hide walked Kaneki over to the couch, taking a seat while Kaneki continued doing whatever cat thing it was he was doing. “Sorry, he’s quite the handful sometimes, isn’t he?” He laughed lightly.

Touka walked over to Kaneki, glaring at him. “Hey, idiot, do you even realize what you’re doing?”

Kaneki stopped what he was doing to look up at her. “Of course I do.”

She sighed and rubbed the bridge of her nose. “But as soon as you’re awake and sober, the next time you see Hide you are going to regret what you are doing.”

“No I won’t, stop being so pessimistic Touka.”

“Well did you even ask if Hide wanted this?” She growled out in frustration. She could hardly handle regular Kaneki, she definitely did not have the patience for him like this.

Kaneki turned his gaze to the blond. “You don’t mind this, do you Hide?” He asked.

Hide felt put on the spot. “No, I don’t really mind it, but–“ before he could say anything else Kaneki turned back to Touka.

“See, I told you it was fine.” He said, going back to rub on Hide’s arm.

“He doesn’t even know what you’re implying!” She said in frustration.

Hide looked at Touka curiously. “What’s he doing? And why is it bad?”

She sighed once more. “So obviously by now you know we have some cat-like tendencies.” He nodded. “Well one of those tendencies happens to be scent marking.” She said plainly.

“You mean like how animals spray to mark their territory?” He asked.

Touka made a face of disgust. “We are more civil than that, but yeah it’s the same idea. Well cats, like cat cats, have 3 ways to mark areas or things that are theirs with scent. Spraying, like you mentioned, marking things with their claws, and the last is by rubbing a certain gland located around their cheeks to mark things.”

“Soooo…” Hide said, at a loss to where she was going with this.

“So, because of what he is doing, anyone like us will know that he has claimed you just by the way you smell. Kaneki is basically saying that you belong to him right now.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> i couldnt not do the face rubby thing.


	5. Chapter 5

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Woah, check it out I posted a chapter. Like I said this is just kind of like a blowing off steam fic, so I don't know when I will update again (especially since I started belle fleur now along with the next part of inescapable) but I will update it again...eventually.

After hearing that new information, Hide joined in at trying to convince Kaneki to stop, but that only ended up with them having to deal with an upset and very persistent drunk Kaneki. Though eventually the two were able to get him to settle down. Now Kaneki was softly snoring away, worn out from everything that had happened the past few hours. His head lay in Hide’s lap like a pillow, and the blond was gently stroking his hair.

Exhausted, Touka slumped down on the couch beside Hide.

“He seems like he can be such a handful at times, and I’m probably not helping very much with that, so thanks for this Touka.” Hide said, but his attention was still on the sleeping boy in his lap.

She sighed. “Well if I didn’t look out for him who else would, trouble seems to follow him wherever he goes.” She looked down at the sleeping face of her friend, her features softening. “When he’s like this he looks so much like he used to.”

“You mean he wasn’t always all…” How should he describe it? Not uptight… not moody… there was a word for it but Hide just couldn’t put his finger on it.

His face must have said it all because Touka lightly laughed and shook her head. “No, he used to be the kindest, sweetest guy I knew…” She leaned over and brushed a fallen strand of hair out of Kaneki’s face. “But then he had a bad run in with some other cats… It’s not really my story to tell though.” She said. “If you want to know you should ask him, though I doubt he’ll talk about it.”

Hide yawned. “Well, I think I should get back home and to bed. Will you be alright if he wakes up?”

“I think I can handle him.”

He gently lifted Kaneki up so that he could get up before laying him back down on the couch. “I will see you later then

* * *

 

Kaneki woke up the next day with a killer hangover. It was like the sub was trying to blind him and his head felt like it was going to explode. He should have never taken that drink from Itori. He groaned, flipping over on the couch and covering his head with a blanket. All he wanted to do right now was sleep this accursed headache off.

He had almost gotten back to sleep when the blanket was suddenly pulled off him and something was shoved in his face.

"Get up, you have morning shift today."

He took what was apparently his apron of his face. "Toukaaaa" he groaned. "Can't you take my shift for me?" He felt like shit, he didn't want to work, especially when work was a cheery coffee shop.

"What? No!" She growled at him. "I took your shift yesterday!"

"But Touka..."

"No buts, you're taking that shift."  It's not like she could take his shift anyways when she was also scheduled to work today, but also this shift would be punishment enough for everything he put her through last night. "Now get dressed, you have to wash down the tables before the customers arrive."

Kaneki slowly got off the couch, stalking away to find something to help him through the day and grumbling to himself about how unfair all of this was

 

He was right, so far his shift had been horrible. Touka made him work the front counter, forcing him to greet the customers and wear a falsely sweet smile as he took their orders. The only thing he really had to look forward to was the fact that Hide should be done with his school stuff and Kaneki would have a bit of sunshine that is slightly tolerable to be around.

Speaking of the blond, guess who just happened to walk into the shop. 

Kaneki smiled, glad to see him after such a long time, but as Hide got closer his smile faltered. He didn't smell like sunflowers and sunshine like he usually did. No, he smelled like... Kaneki's face blanched. He turned, completely ignoring whoever just walked up to the counter and quickly walking past Touka and into the back. He practically slammed the door to the break room closed because this couldn't be happening.

Kaneki paced back and forth in front of the small couch, his fur all bristled up and standing on end. A cats scent, his scent, had been all over Hide, overpowering anything and everything else. He threw his hat down onto the floor. What the hell did he even do last night?! He couldn't remember.

There was a soft knocking on the door. "Kaneki?" Touka slowly opened it, stepping inside. "Wow, ok." She said when she saw him. "I knew you weren't going to take this well, but I didn't think you would react this badly." His hair was all floofed up and agitated, and she was sure. 

"What do you want Touka?" Kaneki asked. He really didn't want to deal with whatever she was going to say to him right now.

"Why don't you go ahead and take a small break?" He was not expecting her to say that. "Your in no condition to work right now. Just take a few minutes and try to calm back down, alright?"

As she turned to leave he called out to her. "Thanks Touka..."

"It's no big deal." She said, leaving the room to head back to the front.

Kaneki sighed, falling back to lay down on the couch.

What was he even doing here? He had no intention of staying; he just needed a place to crash for a few days, so why was it he had no plans about leaving again? He wasn't the type of person that deserved being able to work somewhere nice like Anteiku, or even have anything that closely resembled a normal happy life.

Another soft knock at the door interpreted his thoughts. "Come in."

The smell was the first thing that hit him. Kaneki bolted upright, surprised to see the blond. "H-Hide, what are you doing back here?" As Hide got closer, the smell only seemed to get stronger, filling Kaneki with shame, embarrassment and perhaps the tiniest bit of joy and pride.

"Touka said you were back here and that we should, you know... Talk things out I guess?" He said.

Kaneki opened his mouth to say that there wasn't anything to talk about, but Hide cut him off.

"She also said you would probably try to get to leave instead of facing the problem and that I shouldn't let you do that."

Kaneki turned his head away. "There's nothing to talk about."

Hide sighed and scratched the back of his head. "Look," he said, walking over to take a seat next to Kaneki on the couch. "We both know you weren't in your right mind last night. You were drunk, and you probably didn't think anything of your actions at the time."

Kaneki could feel his face heating up. Hide talked as if he knew what Kaneki did, what he smelled like right now to everyone with a good nose. Touka must have explained it all to him, and that only made Kaneki feel worse about everything. Hide must think he is so weird and gross, scent marking him like that.

"So, I think we should just kinda start things all over; forget that lay night ever happened. I mean I can't even smell a difference personally, but even so, whatever it is you guys are smelling will wash away eventually, so it's not even that big a deal."

Kaneki's head snapped up in surprise, looking at Hide. "You mean you don't hate me, or think I'm weird?"

"Hate you? How could I ever hate you?" Hide said, gently reaching forward to scratch behind one of Kaneki's ears. "You're like the most cute and interesting person I know."

Cute. Interesting. So Hide didn't hate him? He actually wanted to keep hanging out and stuff? Kaneki's ears perked forward with joy and relief, and he was definitely not trying his hardest not to just start purring at those words. "So, uh... Friends?" He asked.

Hide dropped his hand back to his dude and flashed Kaneki one of the brightest smiles he could. "Yeah, friends."

**Author's Note:**

> Tags are being finicky, so I just wanted to say down here that the rating is subject to change.


End file.
